Based in Virginia, the John Leland Center has three master’s degree programs that aim to prepare young men and women for Christian ministry. As president of the John Leland Center for Theological Studies, Dr. Mark Olson is committed to attracting a diverse student body to the Baptist denomination seminary, while improving the school's profile.

As part of that effort, the school is considering a merger with Baylor University's Truett Theological Seminary. According to a letter written by John Leland President Mark Olson to students, Truett sees the partnership as a way to further enhance its reputation as a leading national seminary. The two sides began discussing the potential move in February 2016 with leadership, and a combining of both seminaries' resources could expand their reach nationwide.

In a preview of what a potential merger might look like, Truett’s Dean Todd Still will teach a January intensive at John Leland. The term classes will give students an idea of seminary study to determine if they would like to continue down a path of Christian ministry.

​As president of the John Leland Center for Theological Studies, Mark Olson guides a respected seminary that offers quality accredited studies in a variety of Christ-centered disciplines. As reported in the Waco Tribune in early 2016, Mark Olson has entered into discussions with Truett Theological Seminary in Texas on the possibility of a merger.

Operated by Baylor University, Truett is an expanding institution that emphasizes Scripture-based evangelicalism and the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus. The proposal would involve Truett taking over John Leland Center operations, with the latter functioning as an extension while maintaining its present name.

Talks about potential collaborations have been ongoing since the 1990s, with Baylor having indicated interest in expanding its presence to the vital Washington D.C. area. Dr. Olson noted that one distinct benefit that the Arlington, Virginia, headquartered seminary offers is its international faculty. This matches an ethnically diverse student body, with nearly two-thirds of its students coming from minority backgrounds.

As president of the John Leland Center for Theological Studies in Arlington, Virginia, Mark Olson leads a team of faculty and staff at one of the nation’s leading pan-Baptist colleges. The school offers three master’s degree tracks: a master of divinity degree, a master of Christian leadership, and a master of theological studies. The John Leland Center and Mark Olson place great emphasis on the importance of systematic scriptural study not only for those planning a career in the ministry, but for individuals hoping to serve in any leadership position in business, civic, or religious life.

The Alma Hunt Library is available to Leland Seminary students for all their research needs. Named in honor of the long-time leader of the Women’s Missionary Union who presented it with a founding gift, the library opened its doors in 1999. It offers more than 14,000 books focused on Bible scholarship in general, and Baptist theology and history in particular.

Alma Hunt died at age 98 in 2008, leaving behind a legacy of devotion to the Christian faith and the Baptist church. She had spent more than a quarter century in service to the WMU as its executive secretary from the late 1940s into the 1970s, leading the organization’s expansion to a membership of 1.5 million people.

At the John Leland Center for Theological Studies, president Mark Olson and his diverse group of faculty and students pursue a rigorous program designed to prepare Christian ministers for service in a variety of communities. The Arlington, Virginia, seminary additionally offers future lay leaders a thorough grounding in key texts and ideas through a broad-based program. Mark Olson and the teachers and students at the John Leland Center promote core Baptist tenets while remaining open to dialogue with representatives of all denominations.

Baptist churches of all types share a common core of beliefs that include the indivisible nature of the Triune God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as well as the necessity of a personal connection with, and faith in, Jesus Christ in order to receive salvation.

As proclaimed in Deuteronomy 6:4 and in the New Testament, God is one. At the same time, God is three persons, each of them completely divine in nature and with distinct individual attributes.

A number of theologians have framed the explanation in a way that shows God the Father seeking to have a relationship with human beings, and thus sending His Son as a means of providing them with salvation.

This explanation of the Trinity, say many Baptist writers, shows us how God can be the creator and ruler of the universe and at the same time intimately present and active in history, and in the lives of human beings.

As president of the John Leland Center for Theological Studies for nearly a decade, Dr. Mark Olson has brought a sense of purpose to a seminary that was newly accredited when he took the position. One issue that Dr. Mark Olson tackled from the outset was a situation of high drop-out levels among the part-time students who made up the vast majority of the student body.

This high attrition rate had to do with the fact that achieving a 90-credit hour master’s in divinity at Leland could take as long as a decade to accomplish. A number of students participated in the teacher education-focused Master of Theological Studies course--not because they planned on academic careers, but because it took less time to complete.

President Olson took the initiative in engaging with the Association of Theological Schools, teachers, and faculty in setting up a new Master of Christian Leadership (MCL) degree. Requiring only 52 credit hours, the degree was launched in 2012 and serves the needs of those with plans to serve in ministry. Core courses spanning history, theology, and the Bible remain in place, while upper-level coursework has been largely replaced by a leadership curriculum. In consequent years, the program has graduated a number of students who are already engaged in local church leadership activities.

At the John Leland Center for Theological Studies, President Mark Olson and his faculty work to prepare their students for service as Christian ministers and church leaders. The school, which follows Baptist teachings, maintains ties to numerous denominations in and beyond its Arlington, Virginia, community. Mark Olson and the John Leland Center are also extremely proud of their diverse group of faculty and students.

A number of recent studies have outlined the value of ethnic and racial diversity on college campuses. Until the 1960s, colleges were composed almost exclusively of white students and faculty. The breaking down of those barriers has brought significant gains to students of color, who have increasingly gained admission to what were once all-white schools. Today, more than one-fifth of any university class is likely made up of students of color.

In the early days of the movement to secure African-American, Latino, and other underrepresented students the right to higher education, most sociological studies emphasized the benefits that would accrue to these students themselves, in the form of better-paying jobs and an improved quality of life.

What these studies failed to anticipate was the value of a diverse campus to the majority population. We are now learning that diversity powers innovation in ideas and in business: Forbes magazine reports that 85 percent of corporate respondents said a diverse workforce is crucial to their success. In addition, students living in today’s multifaceted world need to learn to collaborate with people who bring varied perspectives to education and the workplace.

Mark Olson and the John Leland Center are proud that the Leland student body is so ethnically diverse that there is no majority group. African-American and Caucasian students comprise the two largest ethnic sub-groups, followed by Asian-American and Latino students.

The faculty are similarly diverse. Only one full-time member was born in the United States. The rest of the full-time faculty members were born in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America.

​Under the direction of its president, Dr. Mark Olson, the John Leland Center for Theological Studies offers college-level classes and graduate training from its headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. The John Leland Center enjoys strong ties to a number of different Christian denominations and has a diverse student body.

On February 22, 2016, Dr. Olson announced that the John Leland Center had entered into talks with Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary regarding a potential merger. The proposed plan places the Waco, Texas-based Truett Seminary in charge of operations at the Leland Center. It also allows Leland and Truett students to take courses at both institutions, as long as they complete less than half of overall coursework at their original institution of admission.

Although the proposal is still under negotiation, Truett Seminary Dean Todd Still hopes that this “marriage” will come to pass. Truett student Hannah Smith agrees, pointing out that the merger would give Truett students who want to work in politics an opportunity to “get their foot in the door” in Washington, DC.

The John Leland Center for Theological Studies serves the Christian community and students of religious study under the leadership of President Mark Olson. A Virginia-based institution that prepares its students for the Christian ministry, the Leland Center is a part of the Washington Theological Consortium (WTC). In July 2015, the WTC announced its new Certificate of Study in Ecology and Theology program, which officially launched in the fall 2015 semester.

Designed to address the growing ecological crisis, the program imparts students with a deeper understanding of the relationship between theology and ecology and prepares them to assume environmental leadership roles in church and society. Additionally, the certificate builds the foundation for future studies regarding theology and ecology, covering an array of ecology-applied topics that include religious heritage, cultural contexts, and capacity for ministerial and public leadership.

In order to receive their certificates, students must take one ecology studies elective course and one class from each of the three subject tracks. Acceptable ecology electives include listed courses, outside qualifying courses, field education projects, and similar studies. Classes must consist of three credit hours, although students may seek coordinator approval to take two credits in one area and make up overall credits in another.

For additional information on the Certificate of Study in Ecology and Theology program, visit the WTC website at washtheocon.org.

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He has proven effective at improving the organization's financial position as well, having increased budgeted income by $250,000, and he has raised an additional $260,000 to add an integrated database system.